With their small production runs and technical innovations, there has always been a special allure surrounding the Audi RS models. Many of these models are pioneers in their market segments and trailblazers when it comes to new technical developments – this was the case 20 years ago with the Audi RS 4 Avant and its impressive biturbo V6 engine and it remains the case today with the Audi RS Q8, the high-performance SUV from Audi Sport. The top model in the range, the Audi RS Q8 combines the performance of an RS model and the versatility of an SUV.

“For the first time in the 26-year history of the Audi RS models, we are putting an SUV with the genes of a real high-performance sports car on the road,” says Julius Seebach, managing director of Audi Sport. “The Audi RS Q8 with its V8 biturbo engine is yet another highlight in the RS family.”

At the heart of the RS Q8 is an impressive engine, which is perhaps best described in terms of its imposing performance data: 4.0-liter V8 TFSI with 591 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque between 2,200 and 4,500 rpm. The turbocharged direct injection engine accelerates the SUV from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.7 seconds. The standard model will electronically limit the speed to 155 mph, but with ceramic brakes and 23-inch wheels and tires, the top speed is 190 mph¹.

State-of-the-art engineering is responsible for transferring the power in the drivetrain. This power flows from the 4.0 TFSI engine to the quattro permanent all-wheel drive via the standard eight-speed Tiptronic® transmission. The wheel-selective torque vectoring improves the agile and stable handling of the Audi RS Q8. When negotiating dynamic bends, the quattro® sport rear differential¹, which comes standard on the Audi RS Q8, splits the torque between the wheels of the rear axle as required, resulting in active torque distribution for improved traction, stability, and dynamics.

A well-engineered chassis brings the right dose of power to the road. The standard adaptive air suspension sport¹ with controlled damping combines dynamism and comfort by balancing the spring and shock absorber parameters to enable a particularly broad spread between a comfort-focused and extremely sporty ride. The electromechanical active roll stabilization¹ enhances the driving dynamics of the vehicle by actively distributing roll torque between the front and rear axles. Reducing the body roll of the SUV gives the driver better control over the vehicle, resulting in a more sporty, yet pleasant driving experience.

The standard all-wheel steering also makes the five-passenger SUV easy to handle¹. At low speed, the rear wheels turn in the opposing direction to the front wheels by as much as five degrees to improve the vehicle’s agility and make maneuvering in tight spaces easier. When changing lanes at high speed, they turn by up to 1.5 degrees in the steering direction of the front wheels to reduce vehicle roll during lane changes and boost stability.

The Audi RS Q8 stands on ten-spoke 22-inch alloy wheels with 295/40 tires – the biggest tires ever fitted to an Audi production model in the factory ¹. However, these wheels don’t just look impressive. Above all else, they transfer the considerable driving force to the road in commanding style. In addition, exclusively for the Audi RS Q8, there is an optional selection of 23-inch cast aluminum wheels in the five-spoke rotor design in a range of colors ¹. Besides acceleration and power handling, another important factor for being able to control an RS model is the ability to slow it down. That is why an RS brake kit with internally ventilated discs (16.5 inches at the front, 14.6 inches at the rear) is at work behind the large wheels. Its ten-piston brake calipers come in black as standard, but are optionally available in red ¹. The brake calipers on the optional RS ceramic brakes ¹ are available in gray, red, or blue, while the discs have dimensions of 17.3 inches at the front and 14.6 inches at the rear. The ceramic brakes increase the top speed while reducing the SUV’s unsprung weight at the same time.

The Audi RS Q8 has already impressively demonstrated during its development that its performance doesn’t just exist in facts and figures. In the fall of 2019, the SUV was tested over the course of an 18,000-kilometer endurance drive around the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring, during which racing and test driver Frank Stippler set a new Nordschleife lap record for a production SUV. The time of 7 minutes and 42 seconds over a distance of 20.832 kilometers demonstrates the special ability of the performance SUV, its incredible controllability even when being pushed to its limits, and the brilliantly tuned chassis systems.